Jefferies analyst Brian Abrahams said his review of titles for the upcoming EASL meeting of the International Liver Congress appears to indicate that Gilead's ACC inhibitor GS-0976, which he calls "one of [the company's] least-talked-about assets in NASH," demonstrated significant positive effects in an as-yet-unreported phase 2 study. The analyst, who calls the presentation "unnoticed" and "not broadly discussed," believes the study may meaningfully de-risk a second NASH asset and could set the stage for increasing enthusiasm around Gilead's NASH program over the next 12 months. Abrahams keeps a Buy rating on Gilead shares. The ILC meeting is being held from April 19 to 23 in Amsterdam.

Cantor Fitzgerald lowered the firm's price target on Gilead to $75 from $78 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares. The firm, which made slight adjustments to all of its large-cap biotechnology models ahead of Q1 earnings season for the group, lowered its target for Gilead given slower expected HIV growth. The "usual seasonal headwinds that typically make this one of the weaker quarters for the industry," the analyst added in the preview note.